Chapter
VIII.—The Names and Descent of Other Æons; First Half a
Score, Then Two More, and Ultimately a Dozen Besides. These Thirty
Constitute the Pleroma. But Why Be So Capricious as to Stop at
Thirty?

For, behold, when the second Tetrad—Sermo
and Vita, Homo and Ecclesia66976697 We everywhere give
Tertullian’s own names, whether of Greek form or Latin. On their
first occurrence we also give their English sense.—had borne
fruit to the Father’s glory, having an intense desire of
themselves to present to the Father something similar of their own,
they bring other issue into being66986698 Ebulliunt.—conjugal
of course, as the others were66996699 Proinde
conjugales.—by the union
of the twofold nature. On the one hand, Sermo and Vita pour out at a
birth a half-score of Æons; on the other hand, Homo and Ecclesia
produce a couple more, so furnishing an equipoise to their parents,
since this pair with the other ten make up just as many as they did
themselves procreate. I now give the names of the half-score whom I
have mentioned: Bythios (Profound) and Mixis
(Mixture), Ageratos (Never old) and Henosis
(Union), Autophyes (Essential nature) and Hedone
(Pleasure), Acinetos (Immoveable) and Syncrasis
(Commixture,) Monogenes (Only-begotten) and Macaria
(Happiness). On the other hand, these will make up the number
twelve (to which I have also referred): Paracletus
(Comforter) and Pistis (Faith), Patricas
(Paternal) and Elpis (Hope), Metricos (Maternal)
and Agape (Love), Ainos (Praise)67006700 Of this name there are
two forms—Αἶνος (Praise)
and ᾽Αεινοῦς
(Eternal Mind).
and Synesis (Intelligence), Ecclesiasticus (Son of
Ecclesia) and Macariotes (Blessedness), Theletus67016701 Or Τελετός
(Teletus). Another form of this Æon’s name is Φιλητός
(Philetus = Beloved). Oehler always reads
Theletus. (Perfect) and Sophia
(Wisdom). I cannot help67026702 Cogor. here quoting
from a like example what may serve to show the import of
508these names. In the schools
of Carthage there was once a certain Latin rhetorician, an excessively
cool fellow,67036703 Frigidissimus. whose name was
Phosphorus. He was personating a man of valour, and wound up67046704 Cum virum fortem
peroraret…inquit. with saying, “I come to you, excellent
citizens, from battle, with victory for myself, with happiness for you,
full of honour, covered with glory, the favourite of fortune, the
greatest of men, decked with triumph.” And forthwith his scholars
begin to shout for the school of Phosphorus, φεῦ67056705 Tertullian’s
joke lies in the equivocal sense of this cry, which may mean either
admiration and joy, or grief and rage.
(ah!). Are you a believer in67066706 Audisti:
interrogatively.
Fortunata, and Hedone, and Acinetus, and Theletus? Then shout out
your φεῦ
for the school of Ptolemy.67076707 See above, chap. iv.
p. 505. This must be
that mystery of the Pleroma, the fulness of the thirty-fold divinity.
Let us see what special attributes67086708 Privilegia. belong to
these numbers—four, and eight, and twelve. Meanwhile with the
number thirty all fecundity ceases. The generating force and power and
desire of the Æons is spent.67096709 Castrata. As if there
were not still left some strong rennet for curdling numbers.67106710 Tanta numerorum
coagula. As if no other names were to be got out of
the page’s hall!67116711 The
pædagogium was either the place where boys were trained as
pages (often for lewd purposes), or else the boy himself of such a
character. For why are there
not sets of fifty and of a hundred procreated? Why, too, are there no
comrades and boon companions67126712 Oehler reads,
“hetæri (ἑταῖροι) et
syntrophi.” Another reading, supported by Rigaltius, is
“sterceiæ,” instead of the former word, which gives a
very contemptuous sense, suitable to Tertullian’s irony. named for
them?

6697 We everywhere give
Tertullian’s own names, whether of Greek form or Latin. On their
first occurrence we also give their English sense.

6711 The
pædagogium was either the place where boys were trained as
pages (often for lewd purposes), or else the boy himself of such a
character.

6712 Oehler reads,
“hetæri (ἑταῖροι) et
syntrophi.” Another reading, supported by Rigaltius, is
“sterceiæ,” instead of the former word, which gives a
very contemptuous sense, suitable to Tertullian’s irony.